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Quality Movie Songs

Sun Mar 19, 2006 6:00 pm

Hi all,

With the exeption of Jailhouse Rock I've never watched Elvis' movies. I am aware that his movie soundtracks come in for some stick but there must be some gems in there, surely? I recently heard "Adam And Evil" for the first time and was blown away by the simple effectiveness of it. I then came across the song "Change Of Habit". Another great song.

Could you kind experts suggest some GOOD songs from the movies, preferably uptempo ones?

Thanks in advance

Wayne

Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:01 pm

From the 1968 MGM-picture Live A Little, Love A Lot (sic) comes A Little Less Conversation, and it´s great!

Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:06 pm

There are so many good ones, I can't really sort them out in 5 mins. But, here are a few of my favourites. And I will only pick from the 60's, since the 50's movie soundtracks for most parts are great!
Shoppin' Around
I Slipped, I Stumbled, I Fell
Steppin' Out Of Line (not in the film)
What A Wonderful Life
King Of The Whole Wide World
Girls! Girls! Girls!
Plantation Rock (not in the film)
I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here
Barefoot Ballad
C'mon Everybody
Little Egypt
Girl Happy
Shake That Tambourine
Hey Little Girl
Animal Instinct (not in the film)
Shout It Out
I'll Be Back
City By Night
Goin' Home (not in the film)
A Little Less Conversation
Change Of Habit
Let Us Pray

only to mention a few!

Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:21 pm

Great list Bajo, I´m off to burn that compilation immediately!

Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:29 pm

bajo wrote:There are so many good ones, I can't really sort them out in 5 mins. But, here are a few of my favourites. And I will only pick from the 60's, since the 50's movie soundtracks for most parts are great!Shoppin' AroundI Slipped, I Stumbled, I FellSteppin' Out Of Line (not in the film)What A Wonderful LifeKing Of The Whole Wide WorldGirls! Girls! Girls!Plantation Rock (not in the film)I Think I'm Gonna Like It HereBarefoot BalladC'mon EverybodyLittle EgyptGirl HappyShake That TambourineHey Little GirlAnimal Instinct (not in the film)Shout It OutI'll Be BackCity By NightGoin' Home (not in the film)A Little Less ConversationChange Of HabitLet Us Pray

only to mention a few!

Dear Bajo,
Barefoot Ballad?
Barefoot Friggin' Ballad?!

Shake That Tambourine?
Shake That Friggin' Tambourine?!

Hey Little Girl?
Hey Little Friggin' Girl?!

Yeah, really great songs...and so are 'Padre', 'The Impossible Dream' and 'Hey Jude'.

Wake up and smell the coffee, buddy!

Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:39 pm

Hey, keggy. Sorry for all that stuff I said about you in another thread. But them's my opinions. It seems you can take it on the chin. Here we go...

Loving You (Loving You) - A splendid ballad. This track really highlights how good a singer Elvis was from the start. A must-have.

Young and Beautiful (Jailhouse Rock) - Another gorgeous ballad. Sung with complete serenity by Elvis. Another must-have.

Just to stop before I continue: Jailhouse Rock and King Creole have some absolutely outstanding songs to their name. Viva Las Vegas is another good one for music. These three films form a kind of "Holy Trinity". You should acquire tracks for all three.

King Of The Whole Wide World (Kid Galaghad) - Elvis invested almost three dozen takes on this and transformed it into something that should have been Top 10/No 1 material. Another must-have. This also fits your "up tempo" requirement!

All I Needed Was The Rain (Stay Away Joe) - Beautiful bluesy/folksie song. I honestly thought that this was something Elvis chose to record for a regular album the first time I heard it. Yet another must-have. Free download for this one (remixed: the song plays twice). Go here for this and some others: http://www.eapsociety.com/mccoyfiles.htm

Charro (Charro): Brilliant title song. This has an outstanding melody and lyrics. It's rendered perfect by a great raw vocal from Elvis and an aggressive percussive arrangement (unlike anything else I've heard before or since on an Elvis track). Say it with me: a must-have.

Now, failing that, just read this. It has most of my selections and a whole lot more besides:

Last edited by Cryogenic on Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:48 pm, edited 5 times in total.

Sun Mar 19, 2006 7:42 pm

Elvis' movie songs and their quality (or lack thereof) is an oft discussed topic. One persons "gem" is anothers piece o' "junk". For instance, I really enjoy Puppet On A String from Girl Happy, but I've seen posts from people who feel quite differently. Taste is subjective.

Sun Mar 19, 2006 8:15 pm

I listened to "Spinout" last night. It's probably the worst album Elvis ever released. It sounds dull, dated, stupid and lifeless. I can't stand it. You can tell that Elvis hated most of these songs. But many of his movie songs are great indeed! You should check out "Harum Scarum" which actually is a really beautiful album. The band is fabulous, the songs are nice and catchy and, most importantly, Elvis sings with passion and sincerity. A very underrated album by Elvis fans.

And of course, some of those later songs - "Rubberneckin'", "Change Of Habit", etc - are every bit as good as his non-soundtrack recordings.

Padre=rubbish
Hey Jude=rubbish
The Impossible Dream=amazing.....you sure you got the right track there?!

Anyways, film tracks:

Got A Lot Of Livin' To Do
King Creole
Trouble...
...well most of the King Creole soundtrack!
Return To Sender
A Little Less Conversation
Viva Las Vegas
Lonely Man (acoustic)
Can't Help Falling In Love
Let Yourself Go
Clean Up Your Own Backyard - an often overlooked classic, especially the undubbed version!

Sun Mar 19, 2006 9:39 pm

I'm not a big fan of Elvis 60's movies but they do have some great tracks. Here are some tracks that I like:

Big Love, Big Heartache & Little Egypt
from Roustabout

Bossa Nova Baby
from Fun In Acapulco

Return To Sender
from GGG

I Need Somebody To Lean On
If You Think I Don't Need You
What'd I Say
Viva Las Vegas
from Viva Las Vegas

You Don't Know Me
cut from Clambake

Follow That Dream
from FTD

Shoppin' Around
from GI Blues

Can't Help Falling In Love
from Blue Hawai

Rubberneckin'
from Change Of Habit

Sand Castles
cut from Paradise Hawaiian Style

Sun Mar 19, 2006 9:48 pm

Keith Richards, Jr. wrote:I listened to "Spinout" last night. It's probably the worst album Elvis ever released. It sounds dull, dated, stupid and lifeless. I can't stand it. You can tell that Elvis hated most of these songs. But many of his movie songs are great indeed! You should check out "Harum Scarum" which actually is a really beautiful album. The band is fabulous, the songs are nice and catchy and, most importantly, Elvis sings with passion and sincerity. A very underrated album by Elvis fans.

And of course, some of those later songs - "Rubberneckin'", "Change Of Habit", etc - are every bit as good as his non-soundtrack recordings.

Keith Richards, Jr.

So Close, Yet So Far. That is the greatest song in Harem Scarum. The first time I heard it, it gave me goosbumps, a shiver through my whole body, and I had tears running down my cheek. I get carried away very easily. Emotional Son of a Bitch.

Sun Mar 19, 2006 9:51 pm

Pretty much all the 50s film song, plus:

Pocketful of Rainbows
Shoppin' Around
GI blues
Doin' the Best I Can
Summer Kisses, Winter Tears
Ku-u-i-po
Blue Hawaii
No More
Wild in the Country
In My Way
They Remind Me Too Much of You
Follow that Dream
Angel
It's a Wonderul Life
Girls Girls Girls!
A Boy Like Me, a Girl Like You
Bossa Nova Baby
I Need Somebody to Lean On
Viva Las Vegas
If You Think I Don't Need You
Roustabout
So Close, Yes So Far
You Don't Know Me
Let Yourself Go
All I Needed Was the Rain
Wonderful World
Edge of Reality
A Little Less Conversation
Let's Forget About the Stars
Charro
Clean Up Your Own Backyard.

No, no nooooo to City By Night and Shake that Tambourine. The first features one of Elvis' weakest vocals ever and the second is just a flimsy, throwaway, embarrassing song that never should have been submitted to an artist of Elvis' talent.

Now buy Loving You, King Creole, Flaming Star and Wild in the Country right away! Can't believe you have never seen them.

Sun Mar 19, 2006 10:13 pm

Puppet On A String is a guilty pleasure of mine and Home Is Where The Heart Is. The latter great and true lyrics and sung beautifully.

Sun Mar 19, 2006 10:34 pm

Let Us Pray is a good one, too..like it..

Mon Mar 20, 2006 12:00 am

The high number of tracks listed in this thread just goes to prove:-

One mans meat is another mans poison.

Music quality is so subjective.

I can't see why anyone would put any song above the two classics Ito Eats and Old Macdonald

Mon Mar 20, 2006 3:57 am

I am tired of everybody say that Elvis should never recorded Old McDonald.....

Of course its not a classical song of his, but when I one day will be a father I will love to play the song for my children.

If you don't like it, don't play it..what's the big deal

I'm happy Elvis recorded songs for the children, even if it looks like it's hurting some of you guys.....

Mon Mar 20, 2006 5:28 am

Thanks for the suggestions, folks.

I'll try getting hold of some of them.

Is there not a box set of movie songs, only I've never come across one?

Mon Mar 20, 2006 10:44 am

Keggyhander wrote:Thanks for the suggestions, folks.

I'll try getting hold of some of them.

Is there not a box set of movie songs, only I've never come across one?

Xaykev wrote:I am tired of everybody say that Elvis should never recorded Old McDonald.....

Of course its not a classical song of his, but when I one day will be a father I will love to play the song for my children.

If you don't like it, don't play it..what's the big deal

I'm happy Elvis recorded songs for the children, even if it looks like it's hurting some of you guys.....

Too bad Elvis didn't share your view as this track was the one that disgusted him so much that he walked out of the studio and never finished the recording of it.

Mon Mar 20, 2006 10:57 am

Not only that, but it also made him physically ill.

It did the same thing to me when I last watched him sing it in Double Trouble.

Mon Mar 20, 2006 3:14 pm

Physical ill my ass....

Of course he would liked to record songs that could bring him back at the top instead of a song like Old MacDonald, but I still don't think it would have bothered him to record that song, if he just could have recorded more classic songs at the same time...that's my point..

And at least it should not bother you...when you have 600 other songs to listen to...

Mon Mar 20, 2006 3:22 pm

Rob: It ain't one of my faves, but I don't have any trouble watching the scene. Same with Ito Eats or Yoga Is As Yoga Does or He's Your Uncle Not Your Dad or........... any goofy song written specifically to fit a scene.

Mon Mar 20, 2006 3:53 pm

At least they got an album out of it. Even though Elvis did not intend to record a childrens album. ELVIS SINGS FOR CHILDREN AND GROWNUPS TOO!!!

Keith Richards, Jr. wrote:I listened to "Spinout" last night. It's probably the worst album Elvis ever released. It sounds dull, dated, stupid and lifeless. I can't stand it. You can tell that Elvis hated most of these songs. But many of his movie songs are great indeed! You should check out "Harum Scarum" which actually is a really beautiful album. The band is fabulous, the songs are nice and catchy and, most importantly, Elvis sings with passion and sincerity. A very underrated album by Elvis fans.

And of course, some of those later songs - "Rubberneckin'", "Change Of Habit", etc - are every bit as good as his non-soundtrack recordings.

Keith Richards, Jr.

It sounds like Elvis could fall asleep any moment in the beginning of Harem holiday.//Björn

Mon Mar 20, 2006 8:04 pm

Keggyhander -
The Viva Las Vegas soundtrack contains some good uptempo numbers: In addition to the title song there's What'd I Say; If You Think I Don't Need You; C'mon Everybody; and the underrated Night Life. The corny element that plagued some of the 60's movie rockers is absent here. There's also a first class ballad, I Need Someone To Lean On.

Roustabout has an underrated rocker, Hard Knocks.

Girl Happy has a few fairly good rock & roll tunes as movie rockers go.

Spinout has some better-than-usual rockers.

Double Trouble has an overlooked near-classic in Long Legged Girl; and a couple other ok rockers.